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Gordon Tietjens - Coach

Arguably New Zealand’s most successful coach – Titch as he is known is the coach with the golden touch. He is a veteran of well over 100 international Sevens Tournaments since taking over the side as coach in 1994. Under Titch the All Blacks Sevens team became the most successful in the world. It has won four Commonwealth Games gold medals, 11 HSBC World Series Sevens titles including the 2012/2013 series, and two IRB Sevens World Championship titles (2001 in Argentina and 2013 in Russia).

Under Titch sevens has also provided the launch pad for the All Blacks careers of stars such as Jonah Lomu, Christian Cullen, Mils Muliaina, Rodney So’oialo and uncovered emerging stars like new All Blacks winger Julian Savea. In 2012 Titch received the rare honour of being inducted into the IRB Hall of Fame, unusual for a still serving coach and first sevens coach to receive such an honour. He capped that off by being knighted for his services to the game in 2013.

Titch also re-signed as coach through to 2016 which means he will take the All Blacks Sevens to the 2016 Olympics in Rio where sevens is being played for the first time.

Previously, Tietjens coached Bay of Plenty from 1996-2002. As a player he was a member of the first New Zealand Sevens side at the 1983 Hong Kong Sevens, played 81 games for Bay of Plenty from 1977-1982 and 1984-1986 and played 14 games for Waikato in 1983.

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All Blacks Steve Hansen said Chiefs midfield back Anton Lienert-Brown's ability to play both second five-eighths and centre was behind his call to fill the vacancy in the Investec Super Rugby squad caused by Sonny Bill Williams' Achilles tendon rupture at the Olympic Games.
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Sonny Bill Williams has new found respect for the Sevens specialists who now rank as his team-mates in the All Blacks Sevens squad after completing one of coach Sir Gordon Tietjens' training camps.
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All Blacks Sevens coach Sir Gordon Tietjens has experienced most things in the game but his teams have never suffered injuries like those in the Dubai World Sevens round over the weekend – yet New Zealand still managed to finish fourth.
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